Brazil - The Rough Guide to South America on a Budget - page 241

Guanabara Bay meets the Atlantic Ocean,
Sugarloaf is so named because of its
supposed resemblance to the ceramic or
metal mould used during the refining of
sugar cane (though it actually looks more
like a giant termite mound). The
cable-car station (daily 8am-10pm; every
30min; R$53; W bondinho.com.br) is
located at Praça Gen. Tibúrcio (bus
“Urca” or “Praia Vermelha” from Centro
or #511 and #512 from Zona Sul). The
1325m journey is made in two stages,
first to the summit of Morro da Urca
(220m), then onwards to Pão de Açúcar
itself (396m). You can also hike the first
section along a clearly marked trail from
Praia Vermelha and purchase a cheaper
cable-car ticket (R$40) for the second
stage. Aim to arrive well before sunset
on a clear day and you'll find views as
glorious as you could imagine right over
the city.

pavements, designed by Burle Marx to
mimic rolling waves. The seafront is
backed by a line of high-rise hotels and
apartments that have sprung up since
the 1940s, while a steady stream of
noisy traffic clogs the two-lane Avenida
Atlântica . A strong undercurrent at
Copacabana means that it is dangerous
even for strong swimmers - don't do
anything the locals don't do. Another
problem is theft: take only the money
and clothes that you will need.

Arpoador, Ipanema and Leblon
On the other side of the point from
Forte de Copacabana, the lively waters off
Arpoador are popular with families and
the elderly, as the ocean here is calmer
than its neighbours - and the “Arpoador
rock” often draws crowds to applaud the
sunset. From here, as far as the unkempt
and balding greenery of the Jardim de
Alah , 3km away, you're in Ipanema ;
thereafter lies Leblon . he beaches here
are stupendous and packed at weekends.
Stalls sell fresh coconuts, while for bars
and restaurants you'll need to walk a
couple of blocks inland. Ipanema's beach
is unofficially divided according to the
particular interests of beach users; the
“rainbow beach” between Rua Farme de
Amoedo and Rua Teixeira de Melo is
where gay men are concentrated, while
posto 9 beyond is firmly for the party
crowd; posto 10 is a little more low-key.
On Sunday, the seafront road is closed
to traffic, and given over to strollers,
skateboarders and rollerbladers. At the
far end of Leblon, the marvellously
located and newly pacified favela Vidigal
smothers the hillside, and completes the
sweep around the bay.

3

Copacabana and Leme
Leme and Copacabana are different
stretches of the same 4km beach. At the
northeastern end of the Praia do Leme,
the Morro do Leme rises up to the
ruined Forte do Leme, a thirty-minute
cobblestone walk from the army's sports
club (8am-5pm daily; R$4), great for
more wonderful views of the Zona Sul
and Guanabara Bay. Leme morphs into
Copacabana at Avenida Princesa Isabel.
he Praia de Copacabana runs a further
3km to the military-owned Forte de
Copacabana (Tues-Sun 10am-5pm;
R$4), certainly worth a wander around
and a drink at its branch of Confeitaria
Colombo . Immortalized in song by Barry
Manilow, the beach is stunning, right
down to its over-the-top mosaic

THE GIRL FROM IPANEMA
It was at a bar called Veloso in 1962 that master composer-musicians Tom Jobim and Vinicius de
Moraes sat down and penned Garota de Ipanema - The Girl from Ipanema - which put both
bossa nova and Ipanema on the global arts map. The song was inspired by 15-year-old local girl
Heloisa Paez Pinto, who would pass each morning on her way to the beach. These days the bar
has been renamed A Garota de Ipanema , and is located at Rua Vinicius de Moraes 49 - changed
from Rua Montenegro in honour of the lyricist - while the song has been kept alive through
numerous cover versions by the likes of Frank Sinatra and Shirley Bassey. Heloisa posed as a
Playboy playmate in 1987 and 2003 - the latter at the age of 58 - and now runs a chain of fashion
stores (one next door to the bar, at Rua Vinicius de Moraes 53). No prizes for guessing the name.